WOMEN IN THE IRISH PARLIAMENT: HISTORY AND MODERN STATE OF POLITICAL REPRESENTATION

Abstract

The article attempts to trace the history of women's political representation in the Irish parliament - from the struggle for the right to vote and to be elected to parliament to the current level of women's representation in the Oireachtas and related discussions in the political elite and Irish society. The author draws attention to the specifics of the policy of various Irish parties in relation to the problem of representation of women in parliament and demonstrates the importance of political and national culture for such a phenomenon as the participation of women in politics. Analyzing the change in the proportion of women in the lower house of the Oireachtas, the author demonstrates the influence of the Irish women's movement on the dynamics of the number of female TDs. The author concludes that the policy of affirmative action played a significant, but insufficient role in the country, which for a long time remained under the influence of the Catholic Church and its patriarchal view of the role of women in society.